When I was first diagnosed on February 18, 2009, I was completely devastated. The road to recovery seemed endless and I had no idea where it was leading me. I felt better once getting a treatment plan nailed down, but it still seemed so daunting, scary, and unpredictable.
But now, I can't believe I have one more chemo treatment left. When I talk to people about it, many have commented, "It may not seem like it to you, but that time seemed to go so fast." I always reply that it felt the same for me too. I think the fact that I was still working as much as possible helped to pass the two weeks of time between chemo treatments quickly. I was still maintaining a relatively constant schedule, and being at work made me forget about cancer for those few hours a day. I felt useful, responsible, and worthy. My students needed me to be their teacher, and I needed them to make me feel like a teacher that happenend to have cancer while doing her job. I hated the days I looked and felt like a cancer patient, and nothing else.
Treatment #7 was uneventful, just how I like it. I slept a good three hours thanks to the Benadryl, and had my blood pressure taken about ten times, even during my sleep. I think it's lowest was 80 something over 50 something, which was while I was napping. Leave it to me to be totally relaxed during chemo.
I'm actually looking forward to my last treatment in two weeks. It will mark the end of this first and hopefully most difficult phase of treating my cancer. Dr. K. said we'll wait about a month to do surgery, which leaves me with July to "forget" that I have cancer and just enjoy the summer. I already made a list of fun things I want to do, including visiting a friend's house in CT, going to the Bronx Zoo, seeing a Broadway play, spending time with my little nephew, going to Atlantic City, going to the beach, taking a bellydance class in NYC, and doing some more exercising (although I'll wait until surgery is over to unfreeze my gym membership). I also have some get-togethers and a wedding to attend, so I'll be keeping myself happily busy during that month!
I'll deal with surgery and radiation when the time comes, and then create a new list of fun things to do once cancer treatment is completely over and done with, which will hopefully be sometime in September. Suggestions welcome :)
June 20, 2009
June 12, 2009
The Wicked Witch is Melting!
I nicknamed the tumor "the wicked witch" because that's exactly what it is: an evil, unwelcomed guest that's invading my body and causing all sorts of trouble. Unfortunately, it takes more than water to melt this witch!
This past Monday I had an MRI done to see the progress of my treatment and get a sense of how the tumor is responding to chemo. I had an MRI prior to starting chemo, so I was familiar with the routine. It's a face-down procedure where you lay on the table and place your breasts in two holes. The table then slides backwards into the MRI tube and you lay there for about 20 minutes while the imaging takes place. Headphones are worn to protect the ears from the loud noises the machine makes, and I got to listen to the sweet voice of Josh Groban.
I spoke with a nurse practitioner from my surgeon's office today about the results. Prior to chemo, the MRI detected four enlarged auxilliary lymph nodes under the arm, all of which have now decreased in size. The wicked witch herself has also decreased in size, and there is "no other significant enhancement." All good news!
Call me Dorothy if you want, but I'm on the yellow brick road to recovery!
This past Monday I had an MRI done to see the progress of my treatment and get a sense of how the tumor is responding to chemo. I had an MRI prior to starting chemo, so I was familiar with the routine. It's a face-down procedure where you lay on the table and place your breasts in two holes. The table then slides backwards into the MRI tube and you lay there for about 20 minutes while the imaging takes place. Headphones are worn to protect the ears from the loud noises the machine makes, and I got to listen to the sweet voice of Josh Groban.
I spoke with a nurse practitioner from my surgeon's office today about the results. Prior to chemo, the MRI detected four enlarged auxilliary lymph nodes under the arm, all of which have now decreased in size. The wicked witch herself has also decreased in size, and there is "no other significant enhancement." All good news!
Call me Dorothy if you want, but I'm on the yellow brick road to recovery!
June 6, 2009
The Bite of the Vampire
I wasn't really bitten by a vampire, although yesterday's experience made me think I have a slight idea what it would be like if I were to be bitten by one. If Edward Cullen from Twilight or Bill Compton from True Blood happen to be reading this, I'm ready for you.
Chemo began with the usual pre-meds to prevent a reaction, but this time it was the pre-meds tha caused a problem. As my sweet, southern nurse from Louisiana was injecting the steroid, I all of a sudden became short of breath and was coughing and wheezing. While that was going on, an awful burning sensation went through my body, but since I couldn't breathe it was hard to voice the pain I felt. She immediately stopped what she was doing and the burn went away within a couple minutes. She then administered the rest of the drug nice and slowly. The other drugs that needed to be dripped in were down very slowly as well, so no further mishaps to report. I was at the Infusion Center from 8 - 2:30, but it was worth it to have a smooth treatment.
Having just seen Twilight again recently, I imagined that the burn I was feeling was the same kind of burn that humans feel when they are bitten by a vampire and undergoing the metamorphosis from human to vampire. I wasn't thinking about that while I was feeling the burn of course, but perhaps if I did I could have imagined sexy vampire Edward Cullen being the one responsible for the bite that caused the burn, which would have put a whole different spin on chemo! With two treatments left to go, I'll be sure to keep this thought in the back of my mind just in case a similar mishap takes place. As if I need a reason to think about Edward Cullen!
Chemo began with the usual pre-meds to prevent a reaction, but this time it was the pre-meds tha caused a problem. As my sweet, southern nurse from Louisiana was injecting the steroid, I all of a sudden became short of breath and was coughing and wheezing. While that was going on, an awful burning sensation went through my body, but since I couldn't breathe it was hard to voice the pain I felt. She immediately stopped what she was doing and the burn went away within a couple minutes. She then administered the rest of the drug nice and slowly. The other drugs that needed to be dripped in were down very slowly as well, so no further mishaps to report. I was at the Infusion Center from 8 - 2:30, but it was worth it to have a smooth treatment.
Having just seen Twilight again recently, I imagined that the burn I was feeling was the same kind of burn that humans feel when they are bitten by a vampire and undergoing the metamorphosis from human to vampire. I wasn't thinking about that while I was feeling the burn of course, but perhaps if I did I could have imagined sexy vampire Edward Cullen being the one responsible for the bite that caused the burn, which would have put a whole different spin on chemo! With two treatments left to go, I'll be sure to keep this thought in the back of my mind just in case a similar mishap takes place. As if I need a reason to think about Edward Cullen!
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